Hamas tries to calm protests but Israeli troops still shoot 130 Gazans
Israeli troops shot at least 130 Palestinians as thousands protested near Gaza’s border with Israel.
The demonstrators mainly kept their distance from the fortified fence after calls to avoid an increase in violence.
Rockets fired from Gaza on Wednesday brought the territory’s Hamas rulers and Israel closer to full-scale confrontation.
Since March, Palestinians have moved up to the border fence every Friday and occasionally breached it, leading to clashes in which more than 200 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier have been killed.
Although thousands again gathered for the protest in northern Gaza, the demonstrators stayed at least 100 metres from the border.
Hamas security officials in at least one location discouraged protesters from going near the fence.
Kites and balloons with burning material were launched across the frontier into southern Israel, and the Israeli army said one of its aircraft attacked a group of men launching balloons.
An Egyptian security delegation visited Gaza on Thursday and encouraged Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh to calm the protests down.
UN envoy Nickolay Mladenov also urged all sides “to exercise restraint, to proceed in a peaceful manner, and to avoid escalation”.
On Wednesday, two rockets were fired from the Palestinian enclave at Israel, with one destroying a house in the southern city of Beersheba.
In response Israel launched air strikes at about 20 Hamas targets in Gaza.